From the splinter and from the beam
The logion of the splinter and the beam is ascribed to Jesus of Nazareth . It is both in the Sermon on the Mount ( Mt 7.3 to 5 EU ) and in the Sermon ( Lk 6.41 to 42 EU ) and outside of the New Testament Gospel of Thomas handed (no. 27).
text
Translation of the two Bible texts based on the revised Luther Bible (2017):
| Sermon on the Mount | Field speech |
|---|---|
| Mt 7,3 But what do you see the splinter in your brother's eye, and do you not take the log in your eye? | Lk 6.41 Why do you see the splinter in your brother's eye, but you do not see the beam in your own eye? |
| 7.4 Or how can you say to your brother, Stop, I will pull the splinter out of your eye! - and see, is there a beam in your eye? | 6.42a How can you say to your brother, Hold still, brother, I will pull the splinter out of your eye, and you yourself cannot see the log in your eye? |
| 7,5 You hypocrites, first remove the beam from your eye; then you can see and pull the splinter out of your brother's eye. | 6.42b You hypocrite, first pull the log out of your eye, then you can see and pull the splinter out of your brother's eye. |
Through the repeated use of the terms splinter , beam , eye , pull out and brother, the text appears very closed. The repetition of the word brother (added by Luke in 6.42a) adds to the urgency. It is a hyperbola . In the context it motivates the renouncement of the "judging" of the fellow human being. Judging ( κρίνω ) has a wide range of meanings in Greek; Luke therefore specifies: What is meant is judgment ( καταδικάζω ).
comment
Both evangelists found the logion in the source Q , a collection of Jesus' words. Matthew and Luke agree so closely in the wording of the logion of the splinter and the beam that, according to François Bovon's judgment, only a written Greek source, both of which was available, can explain this.
Bovon sees Jesus here as a wisdom Jewish teacher. Exaggeration and irony are typical of this type of instruction, as is the fact that an opponent is harshly treated as a hypocrite ( ὑποκριτής ). The aim is to bring the togetherness in a social group in order, these words “do not reflect apocalyptic concern.” Ulrich Luz points out that the dissimilarity criterion popular in older exegesis fails at this Logion, ie for the preaching of Jesus of Nazareth complaints were made about the texts of the Gospels, for which there are no parallels in Judaism (and so this exegesis painted a picture of the historical Jesus, who stood in complete contrast to the Judaism of his time). The logion from the splinter and from the beam goes well with a Jewish wisdom teacher and precisely for that reason also well with Jesus.
The modern concept of privacy did not exist in New Testament times . Therefore, according to Luz, the final sentence should not be understood ironically, in the sense of: "If you then still feel like it, you can tinker with your brother!" Rather, it is about believers being changed so that they "clear." see ”or“ look with wide-open eyes ”( διαβλέπω , there in the future tense διαβλέψεις ) and then also could be of help to their fellow Christians as assistants, not as judges.
Jewish context
Rabbi Tarfon is credited with saying: “I should be surprised if there were one in this generation who would accept rebuke. If one were to say to him: Take the splinter out of your eyes, he would answer: Take the beam out of your eyes! ”(BArachin 16b = Bill. I, 446 )
In the context it is about the interpretation of Lev 19,17 EU . How this saying relates to the Jesus Logion is uncertain. Either a word of Jesus entered the Talmudic tradition, whereby the reference to the topic of charity was retained, or Jesus did not create the Logion anew and it was already proverbial in his time.
Cultural history
A proverb is derived from the biblical Logion and is known in various European languages: “You can see the splinter in the other eye, but not in your own beam.” Instead of splinters, the English and Swedish versions use the dust and the French the straw used for comparison.
The expression “splinter judge” was coined by Martin Luther . As a winged word, it has generally assumed the meaning of a petty critic.
Web links
literature
- Ulrich Luz: The Gospel according to Matthew (Mt 1–7) (= Evangelical-Catholic Commentary on the New Testament . Volume I / 1). 4th edition. Neukirchener Verlag, Neukirchen-Vluyn 1997. ISBN 3-7887-1331-3 . Pp. 375-380.
- François Bovon: The Gospel according to Luke (Lk 1,1–9,50) (= Evangelical-Catholic Commentary on the New Testament . Volume III / 1). Neukirchener Verlag, Neukirchen-Vluyn 1989. ISBN 3-7887-1270-8 . Pp. 334-335.
- Dieter T. Roth: The Parables in Q . T&T Clark, London 2018. ISBN 978-0-5676-7872-0 , pp. 352-361.
Individual evidence
- ^ A b François Bovon: The Gospel according to Luke (Lk 1,1–9,50) . S. 334 .
- ↑ Ulrich Luz: The Gospel according to Matthew (Mt 1–7) . S. 376 .
- ↑ a b Ulrich Luz: The Gospel according to Matthew (Mt 1–7) . S. 380 .
- ^ Dale C. Allison: Constructing Jesus: Memory, Imagination, and History . Baker Academic, Grand Rapids 2010, pp. 364 .
- ↑ Ida von Düringsfeld, Otto von Reinsberg-Düringsfeld: Proverbs of the Germanic and Romance languages, compiled for comparison . tape 1 . Leipzig 1872, p. 73-74 .
- ^ Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm: Art. Splitterrichter, in: German dictionary . 1st edition. (www.dwds.de/wb/dwb/Splitterrichter).